Sean Hannity clashes with black caller: Cops won’t target you ‘if you’re not part of a gang’

Fox News host Sean Hannity insisted that police did not target the black community in an argument with a black caller to his syndicated radio show on Wednesday, Media Matters reported.

“I can tell you a fact,” Hannity said. “If you don’t do things that are wrong, if you’re not part of a gang, you’re not robbing, you’re not stealing, you’re not selling drugs, you’re not using drugs, you’re not violent, you’re not involved in any trouble, guess what’s going to happen? Nothing. Stay out of trouble.”

“That’s absolutely not true,” the caller shot back.

“I don’t care what neighborhood you live in,” Hannity responded. “If you stay out of trouble, obey the laws, pay your taxes, you are going to be fine.”

Hannity did not explain, however, how a police officer could determine someone’s tax record during an encounter.

“Absolutely, absurdly untrue,” the caller said.

The exchange came days after Hannity began defending former McKinney, Texas police Cpl. Eric Casebolt. Casebolt resigned from the department on Tuesday amid heavy public criticism for his actions at a pool party late last week. Footage of the incident captured Casebolt pulling his gun on black teen boys — which Hannity has said was a response to possibly being “shanked” — and forcing a teen girl, Dajerria Becton, to the ground before putting his knee on her back.

“I’m done discussing this police issue with conservatives and Republicans, and a lot of other whites,” the caller told Hannity. “The bottom line is this, brother: you will never understand what it means to be black in America. You will never understand how we are policed and how you are policed. You’ll never understand that, so we will never come to an agreement on that.”

About the Author

Arturo R. García is the managing editor at Racialicious.com. He is based in San Diego, California and has written for both print and broadcast media, including contributions to GlobalComment.com, The Root and Comment Is Free. Follow him on Twitter at @ABoyNamedArt